Steel-treatment apparatus



D. J. SIMPSON. STEEL TREATMENT APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED AFR.5,191.5. RENEWED DEC. 29. T919. 1,351,495.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

4 SHEETSl-SHEET l.

gmventoz or n.

D. 1. SIMPSON. STEEL TREATMENT APPARATUS. APPLIcATloN FILED APR. 5.|915. nenswso Dsc. 29. m9.

Patented Aug. 31; 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.-

D. J. SIMPSON.

STEEL TREATMENT APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILEDAPH. 5'. 1915.l RENEwEn nic. 29. 1919.

1,35 1,495, A Patented Aug. 31,1920.

I 4 SHEETS-SHEET a.

D. l. SIMPSON.

STEEL TREATMENT APPARATUS.

APPucATmN man APR. 5. 1915. nENEwEn Dsc. 29. 1919.

1,35 1 ,495, v Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

l figli,

. nl "TMS or v AtrAiaAIso, INDIANA.

T 0 all whom it may Concern Be it lrnown that l., DAVID J. SIMPSON,c1t1- Zen of the United States, residing at Chiv cago, in the county ofCook and lState of Illinois.1 have invented oertainnew and use fulrImprovements in Steel-Treatment Apparatusfof which the following is aspeciication.

Myinvention relates .to improvements in steel treatment apparatusl anditconsists more especially of the Vfeatures, hereinafter pointed out inthe annexed claims. A'

kThe purpose of my invention is to Vprovide. apparatus for the treatmentof steel which will give Asuperior results to those obtained byl meansOfordinaryquenching methods; to provide means for controllably hasteningthe .cooling Yof the Wheat treated steel.; to handle alarge quantity ofmaterial at one time; to Veffect economics in production; insureuniformity 'of results, and simf plify the handling oflbulky'qinaterial; andY to provide means/for'efficiently heat treatingthe `steel before cooling the same.

lith these and other ends in viewl illus,

.trate in the aceompvanying drawings such v instances ofadaptationfavs'will disclosev the broad features withoutlimitingv myselftothe specific details shown. .e

Figure lis a diagrammatic elevation ofv la partfof a heat treatinginstallation;

Fig. 2 is a'nend'ele'vation partly diagrammatic of the `Coolingapparatus shown in Fig. l; A v 1 Fig. 3 's a diagrammatic. elevation ofa complete installation. Y f ff Fig. el is a transverse elevation of-anoutletl chamber. Y

. Fig. is a ycross section VelevationV of a heatingfurnace. j e .l

Per 1g. G-'is aplan vlewgpartly 1n section 0I Fig. 5.

f l? -7- is anelevation'of manuallyrop'- eratecll distance blocks. Fig.8 isa side'V elevation of Fig. 7. 9.- is an elevation of sectionalhoods. Fig. l0--. isa-plan viewof Fi'gAj v Figll israfplan View showingthe trans'` verse relation of thetracks; etc.

v Fig.v l2 is a dtail elevation howingfa removable rail partly in thefurnace.

lis a detailed elevation of l the part oflig. 2 showing liftingeccentric of the out hindrance. llhen4 rails 78 are no'lon nsablenewones canbe substituted.IV 'lhe STEELLTREATMENT.APPARATIIS., l

Renewed December :29, 191e; serial No. 348,050.

buggy placedfoutside of the range of the shaftbearing. j Q A. e Thesteel' after having been heatedas aV billet and hammered into'shapel isallowedy toycool on suitable racks v1,81vl1e1fe the axles" are storedpreparatory tov being lreh'ea'ted e and treated in carrying outmyinventionL T he reheating is done vin furnace .1in any1' f orma.

. DAVID '.I. sII/IrsoN; or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AssIGfNon r11o NOAHYs'rnrivnn A-Ivis'rurz,

Specification of Letters Patent. i :iPaJgI-)Irtd Allg'. 31,1920.

desired manner so long as provisionl is made f to control the intensityand distributionfof ,the heat; VThis mayrcomprise rany desired',

system of dampers etc. ln the Vinstance shown in Figs. 11 and'12 the,`floor of VYthe Y heating chamber 3, outside the .range ofthe axleshastwo lengthwisechannels 73 which may be linedwith ireproof cement iffound desirable.` Removable rails V78 are placed in these channels,.`after the heating is complete and doors 6 are opened, withthe'leading-in end alined with ythe buggy tracks .66. A

transferbuggy 22 is quickly run' onto` vrails 78 so that la liftingchannely'l willV haveits lower flange 7 5 under each vvend of axles 2tebe vraised by eccentrics on shaft 7 6 and Vthe axles carried to thecooling chamber. Ow-V ing tol the prolonged intense heat track rails forthe. buggy cannot be permanently placed` inthe furnace'flrids onwhich'thega'xles l rest while-being heatedare ynot fastened to the floorso areffreeto twist s'idew-isewith#V (reg:

buggy tracksV 66 as stated.Y TheeXact spac-r ingo'f the a'Xle's 2, onthe skids' 77 is immateriahin fact notfpractical asftheaxles are Arolledinto the furnace Afrom ra'clrs 18 overyshort well known bridging railsby hand. Certain.special'features whichrelate to thedeta'ils of thetransferringbuggy etc..7

its loading, unloading etc.; are made'the i subject of aseparateapplication'kledApril 5, i915' ser. #19,312

lThe materials to betreated may beplaced on suitablesupports 7.7slightly above the furnace floor' to allowf for underneath `cir-`culation. In the instance" of ladaptation shown ',theaXles 2 areV placed.on longitudifnalvbars 77, but with materialsyof other iesshapes'theymay be placed in vanylrii'idiof L i suitable holder adaptedVto easy transfer.

VVThe heating chamber 3 has bridge walls 4 and 5 to form the lengthwiseside walls and sliding doors 6 at each end. VThese are counterbalancedin any suitable manner. I

The combustion chamber 7 ,is separated from the heating chamber 3bybridge wall 4. Y An opening 8 below the roof 9 forms a Y passage way`between them and a Vsimilar opening 10 above bridge wall 5 .leads theheat to a distributing chamber 1l 'from where passages 12 formed in thefloor of the furnace lead to lengthwise passage 13V and .by a commonreturn 14 to the stack 15.'

Dampers 16 attached to external levers 17 control passages or flues 12so'asv to regulate theY h'eatof different portions of the furnace as maybe required. 'The volume of Y heat is controlled by the quantity of fuelY quired low heat according to its percentagev of carbon. It is thenheld for ashort timev Y to the required high heat corresponding'to usedand ythe regulation of the drafts in thev usual manner.

The steel is first slowly heated to the rewithout change, afterwhichitis subjected its given carbon content, then as quickly as possibletransferred to the cooling chamber where the heat rapidly radiates. Fromthis 'it is seen that both the heating and cooling must be carefullycontrolled. Indicating or recording pyrometers should be used in allvcases so as to be able to exactly note the conditions at any step in thetreatment and suitable inspection windows some of which may loe made toserve for the introduction of the pyrometer points should be provided.

' The steel from the hammers is stored on racks or horsesV Yat.18 fromwhere the furnace 1 'is' charged in any desired manner. At thisY ypointY buggy rails V7 8 shown on Fig. v12 are stored with one endsupported by asuitable hoist traversableron an overhead runway.V

The track rails when made removable are provided with wheels at the endsnearest the furnace. as shown in Fig. 12. They run in the channels 7 3and when through the'furnace they engage suitable guides-which leadthemv into alinement with the tracks 66V lying between the furnace andthe cooling chamber wherethey are rigidly, yet removably held in anydesired manner. n

A suitable elevated structure 20 reaches from the4 cooling chamber tostorage space 18 so that any steel which may require re`l .treatment canbe taken from the cooling r chamber and stored on tracks 19 from whereit can be lifted over the furnace by overhead crane 21 totheracks 18without interfering with another batch of steel that may be undertreatment in the furnace. -Y

As soon as a charge hasl gone through 'A the required heating the doors6 are, opened,

and when removable tracks 7 8 are used they are quickly inserted and thebuggy 22 moved on to the same and into the furnace so as to leave itsmotor 23 on the outside; Should'it however be found desirable itisprobable theV motor could be sufficiently.insulated'againstY heat topassthroughpthe furnace. ."Under ordinary circumstances the buggy neednot pass through the furnace at all. The propelling motor 23 also servesto raiseY all'the pieces sumultaneously from the furnace floor therequiredl distance -to clear` any obstruc-V tion through a rotationof-eccentric'shafts 76 placed near each end of the axles.l From theshafts 7 6 channels 74 depend so as to have their lower flangesunderneath all Vthe axles. The buggy 22 rapidly carries -the'material tothe cooling chamber, quickly lowers it to the supporting rails 48 andVpasses out at the otherend. The hood 24 `is lowered into the Hood 24 issupported on counter balancing V' weighted cables fromVV elevatedstructure 25 so that it may be easily raised and lowered.

VTo quickly effect this, racks26 are fastened near each corner of thehood of the requiredI Y length. These mesh with gears 27 suitablysupported on projecting brackets 28 placed on each side of the hood; Inorder that the hood may beraised from either side a shaft Vis providedfor a pairof gears 27. and on this suitablesprocket wheels may beplaced.v

Two of these, one on eachshaft,V are connected with a crossed sprocketchain 29 so as toV cause both shafts, attached gears 27 and racks 26 tomove in unison. `The shafts may be operated by hand or motor asdesired.

` Sprocket chains 30 lead from thegear shafts to suitablecranked. wheels31 placed at each side ofthe hood and attached to the support- Vingpostsof elevated structure 25'` sov as'to Ypermit of hand manipulation. Themotor 32 may be connected toeither one of wheels 31 so as to raise andlower hood 24 byV power if required. y Y

. The hood- 24 has a perforated partition 33 horizontally securedtherein below the cover thereof thus serving'to evenly distribute thecooling agent which may beibrought in by pipe 34 under anyV requiredtemperature and pressure.` A deflector may beplaced at 35V to'direct'the 'cooling media toward the ends of the hoodand a damper 36 isplaced above the deflector so as to confine the heat to either d end vofVthe hood., Transverse partition y37 helps to isolate the ends fromveach other if desired. lVhen both ends of the hood are to be vusedVdamper 36V would be placed .in a mid position leaving passage ways opento` both sides of the deflector 35. Y

The coolingV agentis brought to vpipe 3 4 by means of a suitably pivotedtelescopic .pipe

38 connected to a main supply 39 in any desired manner. If needed thepipe 38 ymay be counterweighted. -As thehood rises or falls pipe 38 willretain connection with 39 and 34.4 In order to prevent hoodV 24 from Yswaying I may place guide bars 40`oneither side having Vsuitable wheelsto engage both faces'of'the liangesof adjacent supporting posts 41.Suitable inspection 'windows 42 and pyrometer openings 43 are provided.

Any desired vform of limit stop may be used' to prevent hood 24 fromlengaging the floor lof the water-sealing tank 44. This may com'- prisea number of corner blocks placed on the floor of the proper height ltoleave the hood rest thereon.

Tank 44 has inlet'pipe 46 and outlet pipe l4'? which keep the waterlevel uniform and also provide for continuous circulation.

NVithin this tank a ygiven distance away Y are properly spaced withArespect to the air rmay be used.

outlet chambers 58 vsuspended from the tracks.` If the axles asdeposited by the buggy should happen to rest on the top of anyof thedistance blocks they are shifted into position between block ends bypinch bars, manipulated by hand, before the hood is lowered. In the caseof other'forms of materials, they may be Vplaced in suitable metalbaskets that can be similarly spaced on the tracks or any other form ofcontainer ShouldV the steelv however be rolled inV by hand otherdistancing arrange, ments would need tol be provided. These are shown inFigsj8and9. They comprise swinging yblocks 52 suitably pivoted to a fishplate attached to the web and'resting ,on the side flange of the rail.One end of each block has a depending arm to which a connecting rod 53is attached. A suitableV pendant 54 enables an operator to move the samewith a hook in either direction, to move the block into place or removeit so as to leave the tracks free for the passage of the axles. Parts 52and 54 are locked together'by baleA 67 pivoted to 54 so that blocks 52will remain on rails 48. Y

Shouldait be found desirable to treat ismaller groups of axles ormaterial con? tainers, I may use the expedient shown in Fig. 9 whereinthe hood is divided into independent sections, in which case the tracks,Y 48 would have Vto besimilarly`-separated so as to allow the adjacenthood walls'to kpass into the water of the tank. Under these rconditionsthev discontinuous tracks lwould have to be made so Vas to automaticallyor otherwise restore their continuity when needed to roll axles `on oroff the tracks. y

Onewayy in which this may be accomplished (see Fig. 9) is tocounterweight swinging bars 56 attached to'feach other-by atransversevshaft and normally held, fopen by a suitably Vplacedcounterweight 57. If the materials'are to be` moved both-"ways on thetrack special manually operated track gates may be provided so tooperate in any v desired manner.

Thepassing of the cooling agent from hood 24 may be provided for" asfollows, a series of detachablechambers "58 are suspended from'rails 48`by suitable brackets. They are. 4water proof andare connected with aheader 59 which leads to outlet pipe 60. Suitable dampers 6l are*pivoted-'at 62 so as to swing` horizontally and they-fare so shaped asyto open more rapidly at the'cen-y ters thanat-the ends. Rock shafts 63'are pivotedfon both sides near the bottom; `To

these, vrock'arms 64 are secured so'that pins projecting from their freeends pass through openings-of dampers 61'.

are attached to both ends of rock shafts 63 and are accessible fromk theoutsidefofvthe hood even" when entirel-y'lowered. i1 Shafts 63 4passthrough under the bottom-edges of the hood vconsequently there is nointerference between them and the dampers 6l. may be Amovedindependently" of eachother from both sides of the hood'24. I 7" I-Iandlevers 65 0n each side of tank 44 buggy tracks'266 are placed andsuitable trolley wires may be carried outside of the line ofhoodmovement and insulated in any desired manner.

The controlling switchl yand rheosta'ts, etc-.7,

being at any desired point of control. v Y With the apparatusinstancedin thedrawing and description, or its'substantial equivalent IVam able to secure a greater uni formity-of product than has hithertobeen attainable, withy the highest "elastic limit,

tensile strength, percentage of elongationl and reduction of area,vsecuring `the'linest granular structure of the steel without sacrificingtoughness andductility.A The results are far superior to those secured*Vwith v H quenching processes becausev the sudden coolingof a hot sectionof steel -willfcon-V tract the-outside inwardly encountering "theexpanding stresses ofthe inner layer of material' thus Vproducing'.dangerous internal strains which are liable to jeopardizehuman lives andincur serious material, damages. Y I may use any kind of coolingagentthat will give methe desiredresult without de .Y stroylng the vgoodquality secured-gbythel staged heat treatments. IThis,mayfbelairfatYVvarious temperatures, dry. steam' or iany quenching.

In case the materials are conveyed to and '125,` other media which does,not require bodily callevel, a support within the tank rising rails48Vwould not extend beyond the pillars 49 thus leaving anunobstructedspace for the Vhood to drop into. Shouldk however recoursebehad to hand transference of the axles then z such rails would need/tohave automatically `raised bridges which may be formed by hingedtrack'sections 68 attached to cables V69. which pass over sheaves 70,through eyes 71 fastenedVV to hood 24 ending with counterweights 72. Theslack on the descent of the hood is 'first taken up and .then `the tracksections 68 Aare'raised before the hood reaches them. Any otherexpedient such as bridges 56, etc., may be used.

TvVl'iat I claim is, Y Vl.k A suitable furnace, kmeans for supplyingheat thereto in a controllable manner, a cooling device, suitabletrackagesltherebetween, means for transferring material from one -to theother, means for hermetically sealing the cooling device, meansfor-causingthe rapid traverseof a cooling medium therethrough, and meansfory varying such traverse in different parts of said device.

2. A cooling chamber comprising a movable hood, a water seal tanktherefor, a suitable isolatedV .support within, the tank, a

Vflexible conduit `leading' to the hood, a series of Voutlets attachedto said support, and

i means fory controlling the inlet and outlets thereof.

3. Av suitable furnace, oppositelyplaced openings therefor constitutingcharging and delivery ends, a storage space adjacent each end, a coolingchamber beyond one of the storage spaces, a conveyer traversing thefurnace, the inter-space and the chamber, and a second conveyor adaptedtotraverse overl both storage spaces and the furnace on a dierent planewhereby materials requiring reheating-may be delivered from the chamberto the space adjacent the charging end of the furnace withoutinterfering with materials being heated in saidfurnace and theirsubsequent transfer tothe cooling chamber.

4L. VA cooling chamber ycomprising a suitabletank or container, meansfor maintain- Y ing a sealing medium in circulation therein,

means for holding such medium at a critiabove the sealing liquid, avclear space all raround said support, a hood, means for supporting'thesame, means for imparting movement Ythereto so that its depending sideand end walls 'may `pass into the clear space ofthe tank, and means forsupplying acool- Y able tank, a water circulatingYV system in,y

ves

trollable `manner.

ing agent tothe hood, means for variably .controlling the exit of saidagent whereby heated. materials mayv be cooled in a con- 5. A coolingchamber comprising a suiteonnection. therewith, a suitablehood adaptedto be lowered into the tank-with its bottom edges below the .water line,a stationary support withinV the hood butindependent thereof, the saidAsupport extending above Vthewater Vline and a'traversing buggy adaptedtomove onto andl off from the support.V .I I j A 6. A cooling chambercomprising aT suit- `able tank, .means for maintainingV circulatingwater therein, a support extending above the water level, a series ofexitchambers suspended therefrom, a common outlet for the same, avertically movable hood adapted toj inclosev the support and theexits,suitable yindependent. dampers for Ythe severalexit chambers, and. meansforvoperating said dampers when the hood is lowered.-

7, An inclosing hood, a water holding tank, meansfforrlowering Aand.raising .the hood within and abovethetank, a Vsuitable inlet to the topofthe hood, a deflector adsoY jacent the entrance, a'perforatedpartition extending across thel hood, and means for directing .movementvof Vatfraversing media to either or both ends of the hood.

8.' An inclosingsupporting structure divided into one or more sections,an independent inclosure` forv each simultaneously n or independentlyoperable, Vmeans for imi parting jvertical movement Vthereto,independent linlets to each inclosure and an outlet common to all'. y lY A water containing tank, a series of separatesupports therein, aplurality of hoods movable withinand above the Vtank adapted toindependently inclose the supports, and means for connecting theVsupports tofeach 'other' when the hoods are raised. .e p Y 10, Asuitable tank, aV support therein comprising suitable bars'or rails, andpil'- lars therefor, movableand independently movable railsconnectingthe tracks with.. s Y

the inside of the furnace, a portable buggy traversable on the rails.and tracks, and

means for propelling the same to discharge the furnace and transfer thematerials to the treatment Ychamber and after treatment thereinvtoremove the same therefrom.

12. A furnace, a separate treatment cham- `ber, transfer trackageadaptedto serve the furnace and the chamber, a movable hoodV to isolate-saidchamber, an airsupply to theV hood, an airjexit from thechamber,Supports therein to hold materials, tracks on the supports independentof the transfer trackage, a buggy traversable on the latter,

means for propelling the same, and stationary means for controlling themovement of the bu gy.

13. an isolated support therein, a movable hood to inclose the support,an air inlet to lthe hood, an air outlet from the tank, trackage on thesupport, independent trackage external of the hood and tank, a buggytraversable on the external tracks, and means for,

propelling the same. v

14. In steel treatment apparatus, a treatment chamber comprising a tank,adapted to hold a liquid, isolated supports therein, tracks on supportsfor holding the. articles to be treated, a `movable hood to inclose vthetracks and supports, an vair inlet to the hood;

cooling chamber comprising a tank,

an air exit from the tank, independent the supports and from" the tank,jointed seci tions in@ said tracks where they approach and recede fromthe tank, ameans adapted to raise said sections before thehood'islowered and vice versa lower the same afterthe hood has beenraised.

' In testimony whereof I aiX my signature `in presence of two witnesses.

rWitnesses: T. W. AMSTUTZ,

A. L.v AMsTUTz,

DAVID J. SIMPSON., Y

